The inaugral Battlefield FC kicked off in South Korea last night with a myriad of exciting fights including calls up for two Aussies in Jessica Rose-Clark and Gokhan Turkyilmaz. Honorary Aussie Raja Shippen also got a place on the card and did not disappoint.
It was a huge opportunity for one of the country’s best female fighters. Despite being a heavy underdog against the former Strikeforce bantamweight champion Sarah Kaufman, Jessy Jess managed to go the distance at Olympic Hall in Seoul.
The first round opened with a flurry of leg kick exchanges before Kaufman took Jessy Jess to the ground. An early arm bar attempt from the Aussie didn’t stick and Kaufman took advantage, taking her back and unleashing strikes whilst looking for the rear-naked choke. Kaufman controlled on the ground for the remainder of the round however major props must be given to Jessy Jess for fighting off the aggressive attack and keeping cool, calm and collected.
Round two opened with leg kicks once more, with Kaufman following up with precision striking, reminding everyone that she was once the best fighter in the world at 135lbs. Jessy Jess managed to land some good exchanges, mainly utilising the jab however Kaufman continued to dictate the fight with inside leg kicks, push kicks and the big overhand right that she’s so well known for.
The final round saw the fight stay on the feet for the duration. Kaufman continued to go to her push kick, striking combo and connect with the big overhand right and control the pace in the centre of the cage. Jessy Jess landed some good body-to-head combos but did get caught towards the end with yet another big right hand.
Kaufman took home the decision in her first bout since being cut from the UFC.
Raja Shippen made short work of his opponent Jung Hyun Ahn with another highlight reel finish. The American collected Ahn with a spinning elbow, knee to the head combination at the 3:53 mark of the first round.
Gokhan Turkyilmaz unfortunately didn’t fare so well finding himself on the end of a TKO in the opening thirty seconds of the round.
In the night’s main event, Joe Ray clashed with Igor Svirid of Kazakhstan. With both fighters aiming to get back into the winners column after a series of losses there was plenty on the line. Svirid ended up getting the better of the exchanges early on the feet before getting the fight to the ground and winning via a first round rear-naked choke at the 3:31 minute mark.
Main Card Results:
- Igor Svirid def. Joe Ray via Submission (Rear-Naked Choke), Rd 1 3:31
- Sarah Kaufman def. Jessica Rose-Clark (Australia) via Decision (Unanimous)
- Jorge Patino def. Yousef Wehbe via Submission (Americana), Rd 1
- Tilek-Mashrapov def. Gokhan Turkylmaz (Australia) via TKO (Punches), Rd 1, 0:28
- Raja Shippen (Australia) def. Jung-Hyun Ahn via KO (Elbow), Rd 1, 3:53
- Zhyrgalbek Emilbekov def. Dong-Joo Lee via Decision (Unanimous)
Grappling:
- Wanki Chae vs. Jeff Glover – Draw
Prelim Card Results:
- Chengjie Wu def. Yoshida Makoto via Submission, Rd 1
- Alex Schild def. Joo-Hwan Kim via Decision (Split)
- Sung-Ho Hong def. Seung-Woo Kim via Submission (Guillotine Choke), Rd 1
- Seung-un Yang def. Won-Seok Jung via TKO (Punches), Rd 1
- Sung-Hoon Woo def. Jun-Seung Park via TKO (Doctor’s Stoppage), Rd 1, 5:00
